drape
Americanverb (used with object)
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drapes,
present (3rd person singular)
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draped,
past participle, past
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draping
present participle
-
to cover or hang with cloth or other fabric, especially in graceful folds; adorn with drapery.
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to adjust (curtains, clothes, etc.) into graceful folds, attractive lines, etc.
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to arrange, hang, or let fall carelessly.
Don't drape your feet over the chair!
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Medicine/Medical, Surgery. to place cloth so as to surround (a part to be examined, treated, or operated upon).
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(in reinforced-concrete construction) to hang (reinforcement) in a certain form between two points before pouring the concrete.
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to put a black cravat on (a flagstaff ) as a token of mourning.
verb (used without object)
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drapes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
draped,
past participle, past
-
draping
present participle
noun
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drapes
plural
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a curtain or hanging of heavy fabric and usually considerable length, especially either of a pair for covering a window and drawn open and shut horizontally.
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either of a pair of similar curtains extending or draped at the sides of a window, French doors, or the like as decoration.
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manner or style of hanging.
the drape of a skirt.
verb
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(tr) to hang or cover with flexible material or fabric, usually in folds; adorn
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to hang or arrange or be hung or arranged, esp in folds
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(tr) to place casually and loosely; hang
she draped her arm over the back of the chair
noun
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(often plural) a cloth or hanging that covers something in folds; drapery
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the way in which fabric hangs
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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drapesimple
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drapessimple
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have drapedperfect
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has drapedperfect
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am drapingprogressive
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are drapingprogressive
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is drapingprogressive
-
have been drapingperfect progressive
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has been drapingperfect progressive
Past
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drapedsimple
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had drapedperfect
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was drapingprogressive
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were drapingprogressive
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had been drapingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of drape
1400–50; late Middle English < Middle French draper, derivative of drap cloth ( see drab 1)
Explanation
The drape of fabric or material is the way it looks — the shape it takes — when it's hanging. If you're sewing a dress, you need to use fabric with the right sort of drape. You can describe the drape of a piece of velvet or cotton — and you can also use drape to mean "curtain." You could even say, "I just love the drape of those drapes!" When drape is a verb, it means "to cover loosely," as when you drape a quilt over your old sofa to hide its the rips and stains. In the 1940s and 50s, drape was also a slang term for a cool suit of clothes.
Vocabulary lists containing drape
I Survived the Destruction of Pompeii, AD 79
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I Survived the Japanese Tsunami, 2011
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
They spin a variety of amazing webs, from the typical orb web, with its hub-and-spoke pattern, to funnel-like tube webs and sheet webs that can drape over an entire landscape like a shroud.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
And I agree it should be socially acceptable to drape oneself in velvet External link.
From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025
When Harbaugh didn’t have anyone to throw to, he would drape that tarp over a goal post and throw into it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2025
Sometimes the agents would stage mannequins in the passenger seats, or drape curtains over the windshield, or put a bag over their heads to avoid being photographed.
From Slate ● Oct. 27, 2025
Eventlessness has no posts to drape duration on.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
TV cameras have captured trucks unloading drapes, lights, food and even a "40-inch mirror ball".
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
“It was an annihilation,” said Bryan Basler, a 45-year-old resident who drapes a “No Data Center” banner over his pickup truck.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 26, 2026
Wilson believes that Snow Secure—the high-tech insulated polystyrene blanket that unfolds like an accordion, then drapes over a pile of snow—is just the invention.
From Slate ● Apr. 11, 2026
She has this fantastic wallpaper that she did up the walls, across the ceiling, and turned into drapes.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 7, 2026
He carried the banner into the living room and stood on a kitchen chair to pin it to the drapes.
From "Eleven" by Tom Rogers
Skubal controlled his expression and wiped his face with the towel draped over his neck.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
Some threw flowers onto the hearse carrying her coffin, which was draped in the Welsh flag and accompanied by a framed photograph of the singer.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
"What are you talking about - look my hand is covered," he said, pointing to the jumper draped over his arm.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
She cried afterward, as her family draped her in leis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
The rainy season was taking hold and he now wore a heavy cotton smock each day instead of his light cloth draped toga-style over one shoulder.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
In Mexico City, Mexican Americans displayed their fan duality by draping themselves in both nation’s flags and cheering for the U.S. when Mexico was not on the pitch.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
Photographs shared online show some of them taping up windows and draping windproof nets across their homes and shops.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
Supporters waved Egyptian flags and Palestinian flags in support of nearby Gaza, as well as a poster of coach Hossam Hossan draping both flags over himself during the tournament.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Milkmen fought back in various ways, putting stones atop the lids and draping cloths over them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
I wrap myself in a towel and crawl onto the chair, draping the sleeping bag around me.
From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
